Convincingly Communicated
As I write this column Japan has just experienced a major earthquake, a tsunami and 2 nuclear power plant explosions. The news is inundated with stories and footage of the damage. When you look at the desperation and agony on the face of the Japanese people your heart breaks. Many have lost their home and all are in search of food, rest and comfort. Just weeks before, the people of New Zealand experienced much of the same tragedy and heartache due to an earthquake. Even here in our country people are dealing with unusual weather patterns resulting in high winds, tornadoes and flooding. The human suffering is palpable and I don’t know anyone who is not touched by what they see. As insurance people we deal with similar tragedies both big and small on a daily basis. Our protection, or lack of it, affects people’s lives. When tragedy strikes on a large scale like in Japan or New Zealand or even individually for one of your clients people want to be reassured that there is someone there to help them to get through it and put their lives back as best as can be expected.
As insurance professionals we can’t tend to the immediate needs of the sick or dead but we can help to alleviate the potential financial burdens associated with injuries and even death. We can help people rebuild their homes and businesses. We can replace their damaged and destroyed cars. We can put their lives back as close as possible to the way they were.
I encourage all of you reading this to reflect on the important service you provide to your clients and community. Don’t allow yourself to fall into the trap of providing people with “cheap” Insurance. Take pride in what you do and be committed to properly protecting the people and community you serve. Realize that when financial times get tough clients and prospects will naturally gravitate toward the message of saving money. But also realize that it is incumbent on you to get them to understand the importance of being properly protected. It’s not an easy job especially with all the advertising dollars spent to convince them that there is no difference in insurance coverage and price is the only factor that should guide their decision. Believe me if you speak with anyone who has suffered a serious loss the furthest thing from their mind is the price they paid for their insurance protection. Their only thoughts are on getting through the situation with as little financial suffering as possible. At a time like that silly characters and funny cartoons don’t mean anything nor does the cheapest price. They want the peace of mind of knowing they were given sound professional advice and purchased the right coverage. That the coverage they need is there and their lives will be put back together.
As members of the professional insurance community you should be proud of the valuable service you provide. You work hard to convince the public to properly protect themselves, their family and their business. This is not an easy job when there are companies spending enormous amounts of money on advertising to convince them otherwise. It’s not an easy job and it can be extremely frustrating at times.
Sometimes it easy to get caught up in the day to day issues we all deal with and to lose focus on what is important. When the economy is tough and revenue is hard to come by it’s tempting to let down your standards. It’s easy to justify by blaming the market place and consumers. It’s important when that happens that you take a second to reflect on what you do. Those aren’t just pieces of paper you are selling to your clients and prospects. They are promises to make them whole. The safety, security and happiness of real people depend on that policy and how it will perform. People who have experienced loss or tragedy don’t need to find out afterwards they were given bad advice and because of that they will be suffering even more. There is no worse feeling as an insurance professional than to have to tell a client a loss isn’t covered or they have too little protection.
If you ask people how they got into the insurance business most will tell you totally by accident. Very few people grow up with the intention of going to school and becoming an insurance professional. It’s just not a glamorous business and some folks hesitate to mention there occupation at parties because of the reaction they get from others. What’s surprising is that so many folks stay in the business even though they did not choose it. I think that is because this business does provide people with great satisfaction. Insurance people tend to be caring folks who enjoy helping and serving others. They get a strong sense of value and achievement from what they do.
Many times their good deeds go unrecognized and it’s not unheard of for the profession to be unfairly criticized. What is totally missed by the media and the public is the important role insurance and the people in it play. Without the service they provide commerce and families would be destroyed by either man-made or natural disasters. That’s real lives being ruined! Thankfully that is not the case.
So as I close this article I encourage all of you as insurance professionals to do the right job for the people you serve. Make sure they have the right protection and get access to it when life puts them in jeopardy. Don’t let the insurance for profit only folks get you down because there is no redeeming value to what they do. Take pride in knowing you help your clients and society when they most need it and enjoy the great feeling you get when you are able to make people whole again. We all wish and hope that the disasters we have been experiencing recently wouldn’t occur. But isn’t it comforting to know that when they do that the work of people like you is what puts people’s lives back together and lessens their burden.
